Garment



April 16, 1929.

M. KOSOFSKY 1,709,177

GARMENT Y Filed June 22. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR 022/6 lfosonsxrATTORNEYS p l 16, 1929.- M. KOsoi-s'KY 1,709,111

GARMENT Filed June 22. 1926 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 fi m KIM ATTORNEYS I.lustrates an example 0 Paemea Apr. 16,1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MORRIO KOS OFSKY OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TO KENIIIWORTH MANUFAOTUR-ING 00., IN 0., OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

' GARMENT,

Application filed June 22,

i has been used to only a-very limited extent.'

A garment of the indicated type, however, possesses many inherentadvantages which adapt it for many purposes, particularly in gymnasticsand other branches of athletics; even in these fields, the extent towhich this class of garments has been used, however, has been limitedalmost entirely to the masculine sex. The object of the presentinvention is to provide a garment of the indicated class which may beutilized to an unlimited extent and which possesses all of the meritsthereof and is constructed in a novel manner to avoid any of theobjectionable features commonly found in such garments. Other morespecific objects will appear from the description hereinafter and thefeatures of novelty will be pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawing, which ilthe invention without defining itslimits, Fig. 1 is a front view of a garment embodying the novelfeatures; Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on the line 22 of Fig. 1; Figs.3, 4:, 5, 6, T and 8 are diagrammatic views illustrating successivesteps in the method of manufacturing the garment, and Figs. 9 and 10 aredetail views, taken. at right angles to each other, illustrating anotherform of the invention.

As shown in the drawing, the bifurcated garment comprises a body section10 and continuing leg members 11 which, as illusiratcd, are wide open attheir lower ends 1 and in the preferred form of the garment are ofknee-length or less. The construction of the garment as to details maybe varied in accordance with the nature thereof and the purposes forwhich it is intended. In the illustrated example, the body section 10includes a waistband 12 and is open at one side to provide a sideplacket 13 as shown in Fig. 1. The garment may be fastened in place uponthe wearer in any conventional or special manner as by locatingcooperating 1926. Serial No. 117,866.

fastening devices such as buttons and button holes at the placketwhereby the latter is closed at intervals or a fastening means 14 may beused whereby the placket 13 is cap able of being closed withoutinterruption throughout its length. Inany case it is preferred toprovide a section of elastic 15 suitably fastened in place at apredetermined part of the waistband, and preferably at the back thereof,for gathering in the back portion of the garment and placing it undertension at the waistline when the garment is worn; in this way anadjustable snug fit at the waist line is secured. Obviously if desiredthe elastic section 15 may be replaced by other devices or it may beomitted entirely.

In a garment of the construction so far described, the leg members 11being relatively wide and wide open at their lower ends, fit the legs ofthe wearer very loosely when the garment is worn. As aresult of this,these leg members are liable to assume positions in which parts of thebody are undesirably and embarrassingly exposed; this is particularlytrue if the garment is in a form intendedfor use in gymnastics andotherclasses of athletics and physical activities in which the wearerassumes unusual positions and attitudes. These objections anddisadvantages are overcome by providing a garment of the indicated typeinteriorly witha novel protective means wherebythe aforesaid exposure ofthe body and other undesirable features of such garments in theirexisting forms are positively avoided. The means referred to compriseinserts 16 located at predetermined points within the garment andarranged closely to encircle the limbs of the wearer and to close theannular spaces between the leg sections 11 and the limbs withoutinterfering with the set of the leg sections or changing the externalappearance thereof and without interfering with the inherent loosecharacteristics of said leg sections. In its preferred form, the garmentis constructed of a soft material such as sateen or the like having verylittle if any inherent stiffness and tending to drape Ill puckered orotherwise distorted orthey will be drawn into unnatural positions andthereby disturb the graceful appearance which is an essential ingarments of the type in question. To avoid these undesirable featureswithout in, any way interfering. with the protective functions thereof,the inserts, intheir preferred form, comprise bodies a and cuffs b. Thebodies a are made of a material which is very pliable and flimsy andwhich possesses no inherent stiffness of any consequence; in any case,the bodies a are very soft and accordingly may be constructed of sateenof approximately the same body as or of less body than the garmentitself. The dimensions of the bodiesa are such that, when in position inthe leg members 11, said bodies (1 develop no internal strains wherebyeither the set or the external appearance of the leg'members 11 isaffected and themselves are capable of assuming positions of adjustmentindependently of said leg membors as will appear more fully hereinafter;

The cuffs b on theother hand are constructed of a material having arelatively high inherent elasticity such as knit fabric and arepreferably of substantial length up and down so as to present an elasticarea adapted for-gentle elastic contact over a relatively broad areaaround the wearers thighs, as contrasted with a narrow compressioneffect such as results from the use of a rubber hand. These cufis, asshown more particularly in Figs. 3 to 6 are attached to the bodies aalong an edge thereof under tension so that when the tension is relievedand the cuffs Z) resume their normal condition, the bodies a will begathered or puckered along said edge; the cuffs are dimensioned andarranged so as closely to hug the limbs: of the wearer when the garmentis being worn. Because of the aforesaid gathering of the said edges ofthe bodies a by the'action of the cuffs b or because of the physicalshaping of the bodies a or by reason of both of these factors, thedepending inserts 16 present a downwardly converging form-in theirnormal conditions as shown in Fig. 1.

In constructing the inserts 16 of Figs. 1 to 8 inclusive, the followingpreferred method may be utilized although it will be understood thatother methods may be followed to produce the same results. A piece ofse- 1 le'cted material of generally rectangular form and ofapproximately thirty by six inches is cut transversely into back andfront sections a and 00 respectively, preferably of converging form,asshown in Fig. 3. These sections a and a? are preferably, though notnecessarily, of unequal lengthwise dimensions, as shown;-,for instance,the back portion may measure seventeen inches along its upper edge andfourteen inches along its lower edge, in which case the front sectionwill measure thirteen and ten inches along its upper and lower edgesrespectively, both sections being six inches in Width. These sectionswhich, in their finished form comprise a body a of an insert 16, areunited by sewing or otherwise connecting two end edges a and m thereofand at this stage present the appearance illustrated in Fig.

5. Either at this time or previously, a

inserts 16, is connected under tension with the combined sections a anda so that at this stage the unit presents approximately the appearanceillustrated in Fig. 6. That is, the connected sections a and a of Fig. 4are straightened out to convert their common straight line, this beingpossible because of the soft, highly pliable characteristics of: thematerial of which these sections a and a are made; the elastic section bis then stretched from its normal length of twelve inches to alength ofapproximately twenty-fonr inches and in this condition has its one edgeattached by sewing or otherwise to the lower edge of the connectedsections a" and a It will be observed that by his method of attachmentthe cuff members are attached to the respective body portions of thetubular inserts a, I), while in a stretched condition approximating thenormal transverse width of said body portions (1. After this operaloweredges temporarily into a substantially tion has been completed, and theforce whereby the section b is maintained under initial condition andaccordingly will cause the connected sections a and a to pucker orgather for instance as indicated in Fig. 7. The two free edges of theunit shown in Fig. 7 are then united by sewing or otherwise to providethe insert illustrated diagrammatically in Fig. 8, the upper edge of thebody a being turned over and hemmed, as indicated.

In practice, it is preferred to attach the upper edges of the bodies a,by circumferential sewing 17, to the leg members 15 interiorly thereofat points slightly below the crotch line of the garment, and to havesaid inserts, in their normal condition, depend from the points ofattachment within the leg members 11. It will be understood that theinserts 16 may be otherwise located in the garmentto produce equivalentresults and that they may be replaced by equivalent means located at thesame places or at other points interiorly of the garment; the essentialrequirement of the novel arrangement is to provide a bifurcated garmentof the indicated type, interiorly with means cooperatinterior space orspaces between it and the garment when worn, and thereby preventunintentional exposure of predetermined I parts of the body. Thedimensions of the bodies a are such that any strains and stressesdeveloped by the elastic cufi's b, in the wearing of the garment, willbe absorbed by the bodies a and will not be transmitted to the legmembers of said garment. Because of this arrangement, and because of theinherent softness of the material of which the bodies a are constructed,theleg members retain their inherent flexibility and their independenceof movement and accordingly develop no changed conditions because of thepresence of the inserts; furthermore, because of the dimensions andinherent properties of said bodies a, the elastic cufls b-may beadjusted to any position upon the leg of the wearer, within the range ofthe construction, without interference with the leg members or theirindependence of movement.

-It will be noted that the garment as shown may be put on in themannerof any bifurcated garment of theindicated class and that, in such case,the legs of the wearer are projected through the inserts 16 in theoperation of donning the garment; this operation is facilitated by thetapering or converging form of these cuifs,'alth0ugh it will beunderstood that no difliculty in this respect will be experienced evenif the ends or their equivalent are of different physical form orvcharacteristics. In any case when the garment of the illustrated exampleis being worn, the thighs of the wearer will be encircled by the inserts16 and will be closely hugged bythe elastic cufi's b thereof. Theannular spaces between thethighs of said wearer and the leg members 11of the garment will thereby be completely closed and thusprevent windfrom blowing up into contact with the abdomen and adjacent parts of thebody; the inserts 16 or their equivalent in' addition to their otherfunctions, thus provide protection against drafts and colds and permitthe garment to be worn under conditions where ordinarily a garment ofthis class could not be utilized unless additional bodily covering wereprovided. In-

addition to this, the close engagement between the cuffs b of theinserts 16 and the thighs of the wearer, while it securely maintains theinserts in position','d0es not prevent the bodies a thereof fromassuming independent positions of adjustment as the wearer assumesdifferent positions; for instance, the dimensions of the sections a andaand particularly of the back section 0 are such that the wearer may bendover either forwardly or backwardly without transmitting such'strain tothe leg members 11 that the latter are distorted or-pulled out of lace.At the same time,-the arrangement s'own and described permits the legmembers 11 to remain independently loose upon the thighs and to assumeindependent positions relatively thereto. It will be observed that, evenwhen such displacement of the leg members 11 as is possible takes place,ob servation of those portions of the body located upwardly beyond thecuffs 16 is impossible. As a result, undesirable and embarrassingexposure of the person is positively prevented regardless of anypositions which. the wearer of the garment may assume. As previouslystated herein, due. to the relative flimsiness and pliability of thebodies a of the inserts 16 and because of the dimensions and arrangementthereof, no in. ternal strains are developed by the inserts, whichdisturb the hang or set of theleg members or which draw the same toundesirable and inelegant' positions and at the same time the garment ispermitted to hang in the same way as if the inserts were not present.

The most objectionable disturbance of the leg members 11, when providedwith the inserts, is likely to occur when the wearer bends forward forinstance when indulging in gymnastic exercises or otherwise assumescorresponding unusual positions of the character referred to. Under suchconditions, a pull will be developed upon the back sections a of theinserts between the stitching 17 and the cuffs b which grip the legs ofthe wearer. This pull may be sufiicient to place the sections a undertension and thereby to cause them to transmit strains to the cuffs b tothe discomfort of the wearer and to the leg members 11 whereby thelatter will be disditions, the rear sections a of the inserts areprovided .with pleats a which, as shown in Figs. 9 and 10, are locatedat the back of the inserts between the seams whereby the sections'a anda 'are connected. These pleats a provide several inches of extrafullness in the fabric at the rear of each insert 16; thus, when thewearer bends over forwardly, the pleats a will be straightened out andabsorb any pull which may develop, and thereby prevent the transmissionof any pulling strains to the garment itself.

Heretofore, garments of the character described have had a limited fieldof usefulness and have been utilized principally as trunks. or runningpants for athletes of the male sex or as undergarments for smallchildren. With the improvements set forth herein, bifurcated garmentswith relatively .short leg members wide open at their ends,

gymnasium pants and bloomers, as bathing trunks and as knickers andbloomers for inner and outer wear by women as well as by men. Anysuitable material may be used in the construction of the garment, suchas for instance sateen, henrietta, twill, serge and,

. members 11 will roll back upon the legs to an embarrassing extent;this is particularly true when the wearer is lying upon his or her back.p

The improved garment may be advantageously worn in place of thecustomary baggy bloomers of the female sex and" avoids the possibilityof entanglement with the wearer and consequent tripping which is alwayspresent in such bloomers. In addition to this, the garment, because ofits character and position upon the wearer, permits the posture of thelatter to be judged accurately.

The novel garment, furthermore, in the normal positions of the wearer,presents an i new garment may be constructed as dergarment and isparticularly adapted for attractive and trim appearance and under allconditions, is comfortable to wear.

In addition to its other possibilities, the

construction in the form of ladies undergarments generally referred toat the present time as a step-in and which, in its most common form,includes a loose, wideopen bottom. The fact that the novel gar.- mentwill not bulge out the outer dress of a woman renders it particularlyavailable as an undergarment.

The improved garment is inexpensive to produce and as a commercialproposition, may be placed on sale at a price within reach ofpractically all classes of persons.

Various changes in the specific forms shown and described may be madewithin the scope of the claims without departing from the spirit of myinvention.

I claim:

1. In athletic trunks the combination of tubular knee length leg membersof relatively large diametric dimensions adapted to fit the wearersthighs with material looseness, and tubular inserts having their upperedges attached interiorly of said leg members approximately at thelevelof the crotch,

the lower ends of said tubular inserts ter minating within the interiorof the leg members, said tubular inserts bridging the space anunstretching to the normal transverse width of said body portions andadapted closely to hugthe wearers thighs without interference with theindependent movements of adjustment of said body portions of the insertsand of the leg members of the trunks.

2. In athletic trunks, the combination of approximately knee-length legmembers of relatively large diametric dimensions, adapted to fit thethighs with material looseness, and tubular inserts having'their upperedges attached interiorly of said leg members, approximately at thelevel of the crotch and depending within the leg members from the pointsof attachment for bridging the space between the thighs and the legmembers, each of said inserts comprising a body portion of soft materialprovided with a horizontal pleat extending across the rear of the insertto provide excess vertical length at the rear, and elastic cuff membersattached to said body portions and adapted to hug the thighs withoutmaterially interfering with the independent movements of adjustment ofsaidbody portions and of the leg members.

3. In athletic trunks the combination of tubular knee length leg membersof relatively large diametric dimensions adapted to fit the wearersthighs with material looseness, and tubular inserts having their upperedges attached interiorly of said leg members approximately at the levelof the crotch, the lower ends of said tubular inserts terminating withinthe interior of the leg members, said tubular inserts bridging the spacebetween the wearers thighs and the leg members and comprising bodyportions of inherently soft material and of excessive length withrespect to said space and elastic thigh-encircling elements associatedwith the lower portions of each of the tubular inserts, said elasticelements being of materially less transverse width than the normaltransverse width of the body portions of the inserts, and being capableof stretching to the normal transverse width of said body portions andadapted closely to hug the wearers' thighs without material interferencewith the independent movements of adjustment of said body portions ofthe inserts and of the leg members of the trunks.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set

